Moist lemon pound cake with the fresh aroma of ginger makes for a perfect snack any time of day and pairs well with afternoon tea.
As much as I love over-the-top cakes, there’s something comforting in the simplicity of a basic cake alongside a cup of coffee or tea. This is a moist, slightly sticky cake with a crunchy crust, lemon tang, and just a little bit of fresh ginger for a subtle warmth.
The lemon flavor is prominent, while the fresh ginger adds a delicate aroma that is mostly in the background. You can add more ginger if you like, either fresh or ground. You can also enhance the flavor by mixing into the batter a few tablespoons of finely chopped crystallized ginger.
The strong lemon flavor comes from the use of both lemon zest and juice along with a syrup soaked onto the top of the cake, making it wonderfully moist and sticky and fresh for longer. It also gives it an appealing shiny look.
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The flavors actually get stronger after a day or two, making the cake even better.
I bake with this gorgeous non-toxic loaf pan from Caraway because the cake releases like butter from the perfect non-stick sides. (affiliate link)
Lemon Ginger Cake
Ingredients
- 1½ cups (200 g/7 oz) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (120 ml) milk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons (175 g/6.2 oz) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
- 2 tablespoons freshly grated peeled ginger
- ½ cup (1 stick/113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 2 large eggs
Syrup:
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons water
Instructions
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Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 320F/160C. Grease an 8½ x 4¼-inch loaf pan and set aside.
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In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, ground ginger, and salt. In a small bowl, mix together milk, vanilla extract, and lemon juice. Set bowls aside.
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In another small bowl, toss together sugar, lemon zest, and grated ginger using your fingers until well combined or process the mixture in a food processor. This step is necessary to get the flavors out of the lemon and ginger.
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Using a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter and lemon-sugar mixture. Beat until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Occasionally scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. On low speed, beat in half of the flour mixture, followed by the milk mixture, and then the rest of the flour mixture. Do not over mix.
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Scrape batter into prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 45-55 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. If the top is browning too fast while baking, cover pan loosely with aluminum foil. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before adding the syrup.
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To make the syrup: While cake is in the oven, prepare the syrup. In a small saucepan, combine sugar, lemon juice, and water. Cook on medium-low heat until sugar dissolves and syrup forms. Set aside to cool.
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While cake is still warm, poke the top a few times with a toothpick, then brush with syrup. Allow cake to cool completely on a wire rack. The syrup makes it extra moist, so if it’s cut while still warm, it may crumble.
Amanda says
Lemon and ginger…my two favourite things. Will be trying for sure.
Maraia says
Could I switch out the lemon and ginger for an orange loaf?
Shiran says
You could, but I like to use both zest and and juice for an orange cake. Using only zest gives a subtle flavor. I have two great recipes if you’d like to try them, one for orange muffins and the other for an orange almond cake.
Basira says
hey Shiran! Thanks for your recipe. I don’t trust any recipe but I tried this and it turned out good. Such a fresh smell of lemon and ginger. I will try your other recipes and let you and your readers know. Just the syrup crystallized and gave a bad look to the cake 🙁
Shiran says
I’m glad you like the cake, if you use the syrup on a warm cake, it shouldn’t crystallize, rather soak into the cake. But personally I also love the look of a sticky crystallized glaze!
Kev says
Amazing, i tried it and everybody loved it. I have a small cafe and i actually added this as cup cake in my menu. I already have some clients addicted to it. Thank you.
Anuradha says
A beautiful recipe, while the house was filled with love and lemons, the cake once done was polished by my son, who normally would not take to anything that is not slathered in chocolate.
Your passion for baking comes across,
Many thanks
Shiran says
Thank you so much!
Karine says
I was wondering if I wanna store it overnight. What is the best option? Thx !
Shiran says
You can store it in the fridge and bring to room temperature before serving.
Lori says
Should I remove the cake from the pan as soon as i take it out of the the oven?
Shiran says
Hi Lori, you can either leave it in the pan, or remove it from the pan and place on a wire rack about 15 minutes after you take it out of the oven.
Mihaela says
Hi Shiran,
Thanks a lot for the recipe! 🙂
I searched for such recipe where lemons and giner blend together.
One question from my side : the measurements in teaspoon vs table spoon : could you add the measurement in grams? I am a more precises type of person which uses the scale , over tsp vs tbsp measurement.
Is not that I am lazy to google the corresponding measurements in grams, but…they might be different, in my way of “reading” the results.
Thank you! 🙂
Shiran says
Hi Mihaela 🙂 Some ingredients are easier for me to measure in volume rather than grams, so I don’t have all the measurements in grams. 1 teaspoon = 5ml, 1 tablespoon = 15ml.
Olga says
God I love this blog!!!!! Your recipes make me drool over my laptop EVERY TIME!
Suggestion: Have you tried substituting the milk with whisky
I have my own recipe for lemon ginger cake, which is very similar to yours, where instead of milk I use the same amount of whisky and it is OH SO WORTH IT. Lemon, ginger and whisky is an unbeatable dessert flavour combo!
Shiran says
I’ll have to try it. Thanks for the tip!
ZILANI KHONJE says
Hello Shiran. I have tried baking this cake and I must say it is delicious. My family is in love with this easy to bake and tasty cake. Thank you.
Julie says
Delicious intense flavours, perfectly moist, everyone loved it!
Bhavya says
Any replacement for egg
Heidi says
Could you share the nutrition facts for this? Calories for entire recipe? Thanks!
Evan says
I tried this tonight and found the flavor delightful but the texture went all wrong. It didn’t rise nor did it brown. I’m really at a loss for what went wrong. Any ideas? I know the baking powder is fresh and I weighed the flour to be precise. Not at all sure how it wound up so dense and flat haha!
Talia @ Pretty. Simple. Sweet. says
Hi Evan! Sorry to hear the cake didn’t turn out. It’s difficult to pinpoint what exactly led to the result you’re describing, but some possible causes of a dense, flatter cake include, 1) Not beating the butter and sugar together for enough time (this whips air into the mixture helping add volume and lightness to the cake) and 2) Over mixing once all ingredients are added (this produces gluten and leads to a denser texture).
Gina says
Can I use crystallized ginger instead of ground ginger.
Talia @ Pretty. Simple. Sweet. says
Hi Gina, crystallized ginger won’t work as well because it won’t distribute the flavor as evenly as powdered. However, if you want to include small pieces of crystallized ginger in the cake instead, you could try cutting up small pieces and mixing it into the final batter.
Bel Brooke says
Hi,
Your cake looks delicious! Do you know how could I convert this into a 6 inch or 8 inch round cake? I want to make a lemon and ginger layered cake with lemon buttercream for my husband’s birthday but the only recipes I can find all have molasses/all spice/golden syrup, etc in it. Your recipe sounds like the type of flavours I want!
Talia @ Pretty. Simple. Sweet. says
Hi Bel, here’s a great article I use to convert pan sizes!
Lesley says
Love this recipe 😍 two of my favourite flavours combined in a cake, what’s not to love 🥰
LJ N says
I came across this cake in my recipe list and decided to make it today again……sadly I now remember why I havent made it since. It did not brown the first time nor this time, only the sides and bottom. Cake was flat and dense though following the recipe exactly. I did not over mix so I suspect the suggested temperature is too low. If I had of remembered this one doesn’t brown I would have used convection with hopes of better results. Not a fan of soggy cakes so will forgo the syrup and go with a glaze for this one. Doubtful I will use this recipe again but glad others are having good results and enjoying it. I think I will just add ginger to my go too lemon loaf and hope for a better result.
Stephanie @ Pretty.Simple.Sweet. says
Hi Lucas, I’m sorry this cake didn’t turn out for you. Thanks for baking with us!
Antonela says
Oh my this is just perfect!! The texture, the taste, the aroma.. I substituted most of the sugar with date sugar and it goes perfectly, it added depth to the taste. I also substituted 1/2 of the milk with probably too expensive whiskey from my husband’s shelf. Overall, one of the best cakes I have tried lately!! Thank you so much for sharing it with us in so clear steps 💛
Stephanie @ Pretty.Simple.Sweet. says
Yum! That sounds delicious. Thanks for baking with us!
Graham says
The two teaspoons of lemon juice and 2 of water for the syrup doesn’t seem like much liquid. Is this correct? Thanks.
Stephanie @ Pretty.Simple.Sweet. says
Hi Graham, that is plenty of liquid when mixed with 1/4 cup of sugar. If you feel like you need more liquid, add a little more water to reach your desired syrup texture.